atera-mcp-server

grandua/atera-mcp-server

3.2

If you are the rightful owner of atera-mcp-server and would like to certify it and/or have it hosted online, please leave a comment on the right or send an email to henry@mcphub.com.

This project involves creating a .NET9/MCP SDK/SK project MCP server for Atera API ticket management.

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About Project

This project is to create .NET9/MCP SDK/SK project MCP server for Atera API ticket management.

See also C:\Work\Projects\Fiverr\AteraMcpServer\Clients-project-overview-and-acceptance-criteria.md and C:\Work\Projects\Fiverr\AteraMcpServer\Python-Reference-Code-Analysis.md

Python Project from Client for Reference

Client provided a Python project for the same purpose and it can found and used for reference here: C:\Work\Projects\Fiverr\Python-reference-atera-mcp-server\

Milestone 1: Python Reference Code Analysis

GetAgentList API Analysis

Based on analysis of the Python reference code at C:\Work\Projects\Fiverr\Python-reference-atera-mcp-server\:

Endpoint Details
  • Base URL: https://app.atera.com
  • Endpoint: /api/v3/agents
  • Method: GET
  • Authentication: API Key in X-API-KEY header
Request Parameters
  • Optional query params:
    • page: Page number for pagination (default: 1)
    • itemsInPage: Items per page (default: 100)
Response Structure
{
  "items": [
    {
      "agentID": "integer",
      "customerID": "integer", 
      "customerName": "string",
      "machineID": "string",
      "machineName": "string",
      "deviceType": "string",
      "domain": "string",
      "onlineStatus": "boolean",
      "lastRebootTime": "datetime",
      "lastSeenDateTime": "datetime",
      "operatingSystem": "string",
      "ipAddress": "string",
      "externalIP": "string",
      "snmpEnabled": "boolean",
      "monitoringThreshold": "integer"
    }
  ],
  "itemsCount": "integer",
  "totalItems": "integer"
}
Key Fields for Domain Model

Essential fields to map in our C# domain model:

  • agentID: Unique identifier for the agent
  • customerID: Associated customer ID
  • customerName: Customer business name
  • machineName: Name of the monitored machine
  • onlineStatus: Current connection status
  • lastRebootTime: Last system restart
  • operatingSystem: OS details
  • ipAddress: Internal IP
  • externalIP: Public IP

This analysis will inform our C# domain model design and API integration layer implementation.C:\Work\Projects\Fiverr\Python-reference-atera-mcp-server. But we should not copy any code or structures from that Python project blindly, as we will follow Clean Architecture, Rich Domain Model, SOLID, and TDD/ATDD.

To Do

Full Project Scope

This offer covers the Pro Tier deliverables for your Atera MCP Server, with a clear division of responsibilities:

My Deliverables (Pro Tier): Delivery of a complete C# MCP Server, including: • 19 fully tested C# MCP Tools (11 GET, 8 mutation) for the Atera API. • 8 MindsDB Skills configured for your database queries. • A comprehensive test suite (benchmarked against the complexity of the original 268 paths) to ensure high reliability. • A CI/CD pipeline for deploying to two local environments.

Current Milestone: Milestone 1: Core MCP Foundation & Initial API Tool (V0)

Steps:

  1. Create C# solution with Clean Architecture (Domain, API, Data Access layers)
  2. Integrate Semantic Kernel and Atera API client with secure credential storage
  3. Implement GetAgentList MCP tool with unit tests
  4. Configure CI/CD pipeline (GitHub Actions) for local Docker deployment

Acceptance Criteria:
✅ C# solution builds successfully with 100% test pass rate for initial tool
✅ GetAgentList returns valid data via MCP client (Claude Desktop test)
✅ CI/CD pipeline automatically deploys to your local environment on main branch push

Milestone 1 Current Status

Implemented:

✅ C# solution structure appears created with: Domain layer (AteraMcp) Data Access layer (AteraApi.DataAccess) Test projects (*.UnitTests, *.IntegrationTests) ✅ GetAgentList tool implementation started: Core tool class exists (AgentListTool.cs) Unit tests exist (AgentListToolFacts.cs) Integration tests exist (AteraMcpServerFacts.cs) ✅ API client integration: AteraApiGateway class exists with tests Authentication likely implemented (based on test files) Not Yet Implemented:

❌ CI/CD pipeline configuration (no GitHub Actions/Docker files visible) ❌ Complete test coverage (need to verify 100% pass rate) ❌ Final deployment verification (needs Claude Desktop test) The core foundation is in place with the solution structure and initial tool implementation. The remaining work focuses on pipeline setup and validation.

Testing Notes

  • Start server with dotnet run --no-build in test fixture.
  • Use JsonRpc.Client to send requests and assert responses.
  • Tests run sequentially to avoid port conflicts.

3rd Party Dependencies

Semantic Kernel (SK):
https://github.com/microsoft/semantic-kernel

MS MCP SDK:
https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol/csharp-sdk

Working MCP Server Config Examples

Note: --no-build flag is required, otherwise connection errors may occur.

    "AteraMcp": {
      "command": "C:\\Users\\Grand\\.dotnet\\dotnet.exe",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "--project",
        "C:\\Work\\Projects\\Fiverr\\AteraMcpServer\\AteraMcp\\AteraMcp.csproj",
        "--no-build"
      ],
      "timeout": 60,
      "transportType": "stdio",
      "env": {
        "DOTNET_ENVIRONMENT": "Development",
        "Atera__ApiKey": "6a..."
      },
      "disabled": false
    }

Environment Setup

  1. Create a .env file for local testing:
DOCKER_USERNAME=your_dockerhub_username
DOCKER_PASSWORD=your_dockerhub_password
  1. For GitHub Actions, add repository secrets:
  • DOCKER_USERNAME: Your Docker Hub username
  • DOCKER_PASSWORD: Your Docker Hub password/access token

Setting Up GitHub Secrets

To build and push Docker images from GitHub Actions, you need to set up secrets for your Docker Hub credentials:

  1. Navigate to your GitHub repository.
  2. Click on Settings.
  3. In the left sidebar, click on Secrets and variables > Actions.
  4. Click New repository secret.
  5. Create the following secrets:
    • DOCKER_USERNAME: Your Docker Hub username
    • DOCKER_PASSWORD: Your Docker Hub password or access token

These secrets will be used by the GitHub Actions workflow to authenticate with Docker Hub.

Analyzing Test Logs

The CI/CD test scripts (test-ci-cd.sh and test-ci-cd.ps1) generate detailed logs in the Logs/ directory. Here’s how to effectively read them using PowerShell.

Basic Command:

The standard command to view a file's content is Get-Content:

Get-Content .\Logs\test-ci-cd-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS.log

Gotchas and Best Practices:

  1. Slow on Large Files: The test scripts can generate very large log files. Running Get-Content on a large file can be slow and make it seem like the command is stuck. To quickly check the most recent activity, use the -Tail parameter to view the last N lines.

    # Shows the last 50 lines of the log, which is much faster
Get-Content .\Logs\<log-file-name>.log -Tail 50

  2. Real-time Feedback: The PowerShell script now uses Tee-Object to show command output in the console in real-time while also writing it to the log file. This is crucial for monitoring the progress of long-running commands (like dotnet test or docker build) and confirming they aren’t stuck.

  3. .gitignore and Tooling: The project's .gitignore file contains the rule *.log. This is a best practice, but it can prevent some IDE tools or automated agents from accessing log files. If a tool reports that it cannot access a log file, the workaround is to use a direct Get-Content command from a standard PowerShell terminal, as this is not subject to the same restrictions.

Docker Containerization

The AteraMcp server has been dockerized for easy deployment and CI/CD integration.

Key Features

  • Multi-stage build for optimal image size
  • .NET 9 runtime optimized for console apps
  • Proper layer caching for fast rebuilds
  • Stdio communication for MCP protocol

Building the Image

docker build -t atera-mcp .

Running the Container

# Basic run (stdio mode)
docker run -it atera-mcp

# With environment variables
docker run -it -e ATERA_API_KEY=your_key atera-mcp

Testing the Container

# Send JSON-RPC 2.0 command
echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"mcp-version","id":1}' | docker run -i atera-mcp

CI/CD Integration

Example GitHub Actions workflow:

steps:
  - name: Build Docker image
    run: docker build -t atera-mcp .
    
  - name: Run tests
    run: |
      echo '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"echo","params":{"message":"test"},"id":1}' \
        | docker run -i -e ATERA_API_KEY=${{ secrets.ATERA_API_KEY }} atera-mcp

Implementation Notes

  1. Uses JSON-RPC 2.0 over stdio
  2. Environment variables for configuration
  3. .dockerignore optimizes build context

Testing

One-shot CI/CD Verification

Use the helper scripts to execute the full cross-environment test plan locally.

Linux / WSL

Run from Windows Terminal using the built-in wsl command (no need to open a separate WSL window):

# Windows PowerShell / CMD
wsl bash -c "cd /mnt/c/Work/Projects/Fiverr/AteraMcpServer && chmod +x scripts/test-ci-cd.sh && ./scripts/test-ci-cd.sh"

Or, if you are already inside a WSL shell:

cd /mnt/c/Work/Projects/Fiverr/AteraMcpServer
chmod +x scripts/test-ci-cd.sh   # first time only
./scripts/test-ci-cd.sh
Windows PowerShell
# From a Developer PowerShell prompt
# -ApiKey parameter is optional if the variable or .atera_apikey exists
.\scripts\test-ci-cd.ps1 -ApiKey 'your_api_key_here'

The scripts perform:

  1. Debug & Release builds/tests via build.sh / build.ps1.
  2. CI pipeline emulation with act.
  3. Docker image build and in-container integration tests.
  4. (PowerShell) Native Windows Debug/Release test runs.

API Key Handling

The project looks for the Atera API key in this order:

  1. Environment variable Atera__ApiKey (preferred).
  2. .atera_apikey plaintext file in the repository root (convenience only—git-ignored by default).

If neither is provided, integration tests that reach the Atera API will be skipped/fail gracefully.

Automatic act Caching

The test script will automatically:

  1. Check for a locally cached act in .bin/ directory
  2. Use system-wide act if available
  3. Install and cache act locally if missing

No manual installation is required - the script handles everything.

Building and Running

Prerequisites

  • .NET 9 SDK (version 9.0.301 or later)
  • Docker Desktop with WSL 2 integration enabled
    • Go to Settings -> Resources -> WSL Integration and enable for your distro
  • GitHub CLI (optional, for CI simulation)
  • PowerShell 7+ (for Windows scripts)
  • Bash (for Linux/WSL scripts)
  • MCP .NET SDK

Compilation Instructions

  1. Navigate to the project directory:

    cd C:\Work\Projects\Fiverr\AteraMcpServer

  2. Build the solution using .NET 9:

    C:\Users\Grand\.dotnet\dotnet.exe build

  3. Run tests:

    C:\Users\Grand\.dotnet\dotnet.exe test

.NET 9 Compatibility

  • The project targets net9.0 and uses modern .NET features
  • The MCP SDK works perfectly with .NET 9 - all warnings about .NET 9 compatibility can be safely ignored
  • Verified working with .NET 9.0.301 SDK

Troubleshooting

If you encounter build issues:

  1. Clear NuGet caches:

    dotnet nuget locals all --clear

  2. Restore packages:

    dotnet restore

  3. Rebuild completely:

    dotnet clean
dotnet build

Configuration Setup

  1. API Key Configuration:

    • For development, use user secrets: 
      dotnet user-secrets init
dotnet user-secrets set "Atera:ApiKey" "your_api_key_here"
    • For production, set environment variable: 
      Atera__ApiKey=your_api_key_here

  2. Configuration Files:

    • appsettings.json: Template configuration (checked into source control)
    • appsettings.Development.json: Local overrides (gitignored)

Configuration

API keys should be stored in user secrets (shared with AteraApi.DataAccess project):

{
  "Atera": {
    "ApiKey": "your_api_key_here"
  }
}